PNP asks Pampanga court to transfer Dumlao to regular jail

The Philippine National Police (PNP) has asked a Pampanga court to transfer former anti-narcotics operative Supt. Rafael Dumlao III, one of the accused in the abduction and killing of South Korean businessman Jee Ick Joo, to a regular jail. (Photo: Philippine National Police/ Facebook)

MANILA— The Philippine National Police (PNP) has asked a Pampanga court to transfer former anti-narcotics operative Supt. Rafael Dumlao III, one of the accused in the abduction and killing of South Korean businessman Jee Ick Joo, to a regular jail.

In a motion filed before the Angeles City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 58, PNP Custodial Service Unit Headquarters Support Service head Supt. Arnel Jamandron Apud said Dumlao should be detained at a jail facility in Pampanga.

Apud added that Dumlao should not be treated like a “sacred cow” as doing so would be discriminatory and a violation of the equal protection clause.

“It is worth pointing out that, at present, while being detained at the PNP Custodial Center, accused Dumlao enjoys the perks and privileges of a VIP (very important person) detainee considering the relatively spacious cells and convenient ambiance unlike other detention prisoners at any BJMP (Bureau of Jail Management and Penology) facility, all at the government’s expense,” the motion said.

“The fact that he is a police officer and a public servant whose duty is to save and protect lives already leaves a bad taste in the mouth considering the charges against him,” it added.

The motion said that it would be practical to transfer Dumlao, citing expenses for transporting him from the PNP Custodial Center in Camp Crame, Quezon City to Angeles City to attend court hearings and risk on his life and police escorts.

“[T]he distance from the place of detention to the court logically and necessarily presents an opportunity for threat and hazard,” Apud said.

Angeles City is almost a two-hour drive from Quezon City.

Dumlao and four others are set to be arraigned on May 31, 2017 for the kidnapping-for-ransom (KFR) with homicide case in relation to Jee’s killing on Oct. 18, 2016.

He is also facing charges for carnapping, kidnapping and serious illegal detention in relation to the abduction of Jee’s housemaid Marisa Morquicho who was eventually freed.

However, Jee was strangled to death in his car while it was parked inside the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City.